Wikipedia:WikiProject Paranormal

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Welcome to WikiProject Paranormal, a WikiProject that aims to provide a framework for the improvement and organization of articles related to the paranormal, anomalous phenomena and other similar areas. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask us on our discussion page.

Anyone is welcome to join by listing their username on the /Participants page and contributing to the project. Make sure to put our discussion page to your watchlist so you're notified of new discussions. Watchlisting Wikipedia:WikiProject Paranormal/Article alerts and Wikipedia:WikiProject Deletion sorting/Paranormal is also strongly recommended.

Goals

To provide a concise and accurate record of notable beliefs, organizations, experiments, individuals and events which are associated with the paranormal, including their history, background and their current status.
To provide a framework (including infoboxes, categories, and examples of Best Practice) from within which scholarly entries about the paranormal, and related topics, may be produced.
To provide a scholarly set of terminology to describe the paranormal which is technically, culturally, and contextually accurate.
To seek out and apply verifiable mainstream sources to pages within the projects scope with the aim of A) addressing any issues of verifiability and reliability that have been highlighted in existing entries, and B) ensuring that new entries are of sufficient quality that their verifiability and reliability do not become an issue.
To ensure that each entry approaches its topic from a balanced and neutral perspective.
To ensure that the notability of each topic can be gleaned from its entry, without the need for additional explanation.
To ensure that a clear dividing line is established between reporting the belief in/background of the topic in a scholarly manner, and advocating/denouncing the topic itself.
To expand project stubs to full entries and to progress full entries to the next level.
Patrol frequently vandalized pages within the project's scope.

Scope

Paranormal articles by quality and importance
Quality	Importance
Quality	Top	High	Mid	Low	NA	???	Total
FA			3	5		2	10
FL				1			1
GA		1	5	15		5	26
B	6	20	29	65		58	178
C	8	13	55	155		105	336
Start	1	7	53	323		482	866
Stub			4	74		180	258
List	1	4	11	26		16	58
Category					699		699
Disambig					9		9
File					17		17
Project					20		20
Template					20		20
NA		1	3	13	140		157
Other					5		5
Assessed	16	46	163	677	910	848	2,660
Unassessed				2		31	33
Total	16	46	163	679	910	879	2,693
WikiWork factors (?)		ω = 7,808			Ω = 4.66

(Assessment log)

Subjects covered by this project include (but are not necessarily limited to):

Anomalistics
Cryptozoology
Paranormal phenomena
Paranormal hoaxes and frauds
Parapsychology
Fringe science, protoscience, and pseudoscience
Ufology
Urban myths and legends
unexplained disappearances
Some conspiracy theories
megaliths and similar

The beginnings of a list of topics which are covered in reference books directly related to this topic can be found at Wikipedia:WikiProject Paranormal/Encyclopedic articles.

Recognized content

The following articles fall within the scope of the project and have been noted for their outstanding quality. Project members are encouraged use them as examples of good practice and to note their different writing and organizational styles.

Full list: Wikipedia:WikiProject Paranormal/Recognized content

This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Paranormal}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.

Featured articles

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List of dates predicted for apocalyptic events

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Líneas de Nazca, Nazca, Perú, 2015-07-29, DD 49

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Roswell incident

Wikipedia:Version 1.0 Editorial Team release version selections

Reincarnation

To-do

Figure out what to do with old to-do lists...

Article alerts

Wikipedia:WikiProject Paranormal/Article alerts:

Categories for discussion

17 Nov 2024 – Category:People by paranormal abilities (talk · edit · hist) was CfDed by Zxcvbnm (t · c); see discussion

Deletion sorting

Paranormal articles for deletion:

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WP:AFD/WOO

Paranormal deletion

Timeline of UFOs

(Find sources: Google (books · news · scholar · free images · WP refs) · FENS · JSTOR · TWL)

Article was created by one editor to document, among other things, "institutional countermeasures against the UFO disclosure process". Originally titled Timeline of UFO investigations and public disclosure, it was moved by a concerned editor to Timeline of UFOs, as a stopgap measure pending further evaluation. Since then, there has been some discussion on the article Talk page from which it seems clear the article creator doesn't understand WP:INDISCRIMINATE, WP:SELCRIT, or why WP:PRIMARY sources (including links and citations to conspiracy-themed material like [1] and [2]) can't be assembled to WP:SYNTHesize an article in order to highlight a particular theme. There has been some peripheral discussion regarding the usefulness of a rewrite to create a generic "UFO Timeline" article, however I don't see any upside, since it would duplicate content already contained in List of reported UFO sightings, UFO conspiracy theories, Investigation of UFO reports by the United States government, etc. - LuckyLouie (talk) 15:01, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Title has been changed once again. Now article title is Timeline of UFOlogy. However the same problems outlined above remain - and a giant WP:LINKFARM has been added. - LuckyLouie (talk) 13:01, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

You didn't acknowledge that the conspiracy-themed materials as you referred to before have been removed. Clearly your arguments are mostly targeting pre-2000s content. They have been "sanitized" to some extent and more non-primary references are added. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 19:54, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

No, there is still plenty of conspiracy-themed stuff in the article before and after the 2000s: James Fox's movie, Ross Coulthart's book, Robert Hastings (ufologist) book, etc. None of these things are cited as significant or important by any independent histories of UFOlogy or authoritative sources. The timeline resembles more an RSS feed or content aggregator or web scraper search result than an encylopedic article. - LuckyLouie (talk) 21:33, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The references for these are added in. Now most entries have at least one reference. I'd say if any remaining entries don't pass mustard, please delete. I will see if you still disagree on this. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 01:48, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Note: This discussion has been included in the deletion sorting lists for the following topics: Paranormal and Aviation. Spiderone^{(Talk to Spider)} 16:09, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If anyone is willing to do it, I very much do see the upside in keeping it as a generic UFO timeline article. It wouldn't be purely duplicative if it incorporated material from several other pages in a different format. Otherwise, no opinion. PARAKANYAA (talk) 16:55, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Delete The title is irredeemably vague. Would the movie Close Encounters be on the timeline? If not, by what criteria would it be excluded? It's a really good movie about UFOs. DolyaIskrina (talk) 17:14, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I would honestly say that that should be included as it had an extremely large impact on the public perception of UFOs and therefore later reports of them, yes. PARAKANYAA (talk) 17:26, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I have restricted the title to ufology per suggestion of @Praemonitus The movie is well-known for sure, there's even a book about it (https://academic.oup.com/liverpool-scholarship-online/book/37761), but it would probably not fit into the ufology timeline, because it's fictional and is not intended as research. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 01:04, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Comment: I suggest a rename to timeline of ufology as that title seems more appropriate to the subject matter (ufology). Praemonitus (talk) 17:30, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
@Praemonitus, that title sounds good. I have changed the title, hopefully I can convince you at least. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 20:24, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I removed Timothy Good's book. The Timeline of UFOs include efforts from other countries. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 19:13, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Delete per the nominator. This article lacks any coherent inclusion criteria and most of the sourcing is poor, relying far too heavily upon primary and/or pro-fringe sources. The result is an article that, apparently, is one editor's attempt to create a WP:POVFORK for pro-fringe, and often non-notable, UFO material. JoJo Anthrax (talk) 21:55, 16 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
What would be considered pro-fringe in this case? Debrief vs New York Times? I think asking for every entry to credit a source for a topic deeply entrenched in controversy before the 2010s as ufology is not fair. How many of the UFO conspiracy theories are considered not pro-fringe? VaudevillianScientist (talk) 22:34, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I think asking for every entry to credit a source [...] is not fair. This is supposed to be an encyclopedia. Perhaps it would be best for all of us to review the WP policy WP:NOT (in particular the subsection WP:LINKFARM) and the WP content guideline WP:FRINGE (in particular the subsections WP:FRIND and WP:PARITY). JoJo Anthrax (talk) 02:52, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
WP:LINKFARM is only a stylistic issue and does not justify deletion. There is not a clear designation of how many links to include for each topic. It's possible to turn some links into references. Moreover, for a timeline article that include content over 100 years, we would expect more links and references than an average article. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 03:30, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This discussion has been included in the deletion sorting lists for the following topics: History and Lists. WCQuidditch ☎ ✎ 00:22, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Rename per nominator and above suggestion. Note that doing this during the AfD is likely to cause more problems than it solves. Problems with move/scope change should be resolved/repaired, and THEN the list should be brought back here for discussion if problems remain. Jclemens (talk) 04:04, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Comment: the article was renamed to "Timeline of Ufology" and I've removed several non-ufology items to reflect that. I still don't think the scope is clearly defined. What criteria determines if a book goes into the list? Would 1950s books by Donald Keyhoe, Frank Scully, or George Adamski be included? Rjjiii (ii) (talk) 06:51, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for the edits. The book entries should be reconsidered for sure. Only those that introduced key concepts or conclusions (like Edward Ruppelt, Allen Hynek, and Jacques Vallee), first of its kind (like Charles Fort). This is quite straightforward in the STEM fields I'm familiar with editing, but for ufology there are quite a lot of controversies. I think the importance of books will become less and less from the 2020s on because more peer-reviewed research in the field are getting published, so they could become more justified sources of knowledge. Really, I think the sentiment from other editors have to do with the inclusion or disregard of certain books or accounts in the "old days" of ufology (e.g. pre-2000s). VaudevillianScientist (talk) 21:12, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I think the psychological aspect of UFO experiences should be counted as ufology. So I'd retain Jung's book because it's the first study on that. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 01:56, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Keep as "Timeline of Ufology," but there has to be an agreed-upon inclusion criteria, especially for anything from the 2000s onward. In the digital age it very easy to get things published. You can't have every modern book, TV and radio show, documentary, podcast, social media cast (eg, Spaces on X), etc. Wikipedia has lots of timelines: List of timelines, Category:Science_timelines, Category:Historical_timelines. Ufology is recognized by most governments to be an important topic. 5Q5|^✉ 13:07, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Ufology is recognized by most governments to be an important topic. This is categorically false. jps (talk) 13:55, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Ufology is recognized by most governments to be an important topic Do you have any evidence whatsoever to support that WP:EXTRAORDINARY claim? JoJo Anthrax (talk) 15:41, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

See https://ask.un.org/faq/22686. On Dec 13, 1977, the General Assembly of the United Nations with all members present (a "plenary meeting") voted in the majority to consider a request by Granada to establish a UN agency to study UFOs. The following year on Dec 18, 1978 in another plenary meeting, the UN General Assembly voted in the majority in favor of letting interested governments create such an agency within their own governments and report results to the UN. In the first 1977 decision, all member nations were instructed to take the proposal back to their governments to discuss. This made it an important topic, which does not equate to belief or support. 5Q5|^✉ 11:41, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think a vote made at the UN General Assembly almost 50 years ago counts as evidence of what governments today recognize to be important topics. In this case, especially, Granada requested that the UN create an agency and the decision amounts to "hey, if you're interested in creating an agency, you go ahead and create one, okay chap? Let me know if you find anything, buddy. Good luck." So even if had taken place yesterday, wouldn't count as evidence. VdSV9•♫ 13:51, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Delete as probably not necessary. Timelines are useful for well-attested to histories and progressions. There is not really even a coherent subject matter here as there are combinations of fictions, religions, mental health, hoaxes and grift, military (in)competence, politics, and pseudoscience. Better off dealing with this in narrative/prose form instead of trying to curate a timeline whose inclusion criteria will be harder to figure out than List of UFO sightings. jps (talk) 13:55, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
There are no fictions, one book on potential connection to religion has been removed. There are no hoaxes or grift, which belong to another list. The (astro)physical and psychological aspects are the two major directions, the other aspects are about data collection efforts, which could be from governmental agencies or research institutions. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 04:32, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Delete The criteria is so vague that the article will mislead the readers. Azuredivay (talk) 15:32, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Not anymore after significant edits. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 01:38, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
No. The article remains a WP:POVFORK for poorly sourced, non-notable, pro-fringe content. JoJo Anthrax (talk) 02:31, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I think I don't intend to convince you anymore @JoJo Anthrax. Unless you provide your list of notable entries that fit the topic. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 02:39, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
It is absolutely not on me to provide [my] list of notable entries that fit the topic. In this forum, the aim is to reach a consensus on whether this article is worthy of inclusion in what is supposed to be an encyclopedia. And as for I don't intend to convince you anymore @JoJo Anthrax, per WP:PA it would perhaps be best to restrict comments to the topic/content, not the contributor(s). JoJo Anthrax (talk) 03:06, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Comment: I'm on the fence about this as I'm not 100% convinced it needs to be deleted. Ufology is notable in the Wikipedia sense. But to properly be a 'Timeline of Ufology', the inclusion criteria needs to be in the context of extraterrestrial UFOs, including the supposed government efforts to cover them up. The entries should be properly cited by a reliable source. I don't think speculative UFOlogy books should be included unless they satisfy the Wikipedia notability criteria. Praemonitus (talk) 17:26, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Yes, there shouldn't be too speculative or conspiracy-laden entries in books or other media formats. There are already some entries on the governmental efforts to cover them up in the timeline. It probably requires other editors to make them complete. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 18:06, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Comment: Under the new title, this is a theoretically notable subject. UFOlogy is a real thing, and it has developed over time. There have been major events that have shaped it. It should be possible to create this timeline. However, it would need to be constructed from sources which allow us to judge the significance of an event. Those sources will be histories of UFOlogy that place events in context and allow us to sift the significant ones from the insignificant ones. An event cannot be placed on this timeline just because it happened. That way lies only original research. An ideal source would say something like "In 1993, the release of the TV show The X Files caused a surge in public interest in UFOs" (I don't know if that's true, it's just an example of the kind of evidence that would justify putting an event on this list). If someone can make an argument that such sources exist and are of sufficient quality and number that we could build an article around them, then I would be happy to keep this article, but if such sources are not forthcoming, then the article is moribund. Barnards.tar.gz (talk) 19:24, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
That's a fair statement. I'm open to discussions about which entries to keep as some of the editors have already done. For entries whose influence are not immediately recognized, I would use something that came up much later. This applies to many pre-2000s entries. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 22:40, 17 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Keep but severely Prune Listing when governments created organizations to investigate UFOs, or make official comments about them, makes sense. Mentioning a YouTube podcast about UFOs makes no sense at all. There have been a large number of books published about this, and some have their own articles since they get reviewed, that doesn't mean they are notable to the study of UFOs. Listing popular entertainment media that just has UFOs in it makes no sense, nor even documentaries about it since that's just entertainment. Dream Focus 04:51, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Removed the podcast. I previously consider it as a form of data collection and Andy's podcast was the first of its kind. I kept the History channel documentary because that's the first place where the five observables were introduced. VaudevillianScientist (talk) 05:41, 18 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Membership

To join, sign your name at the /Participants page and add the main page to your watchlist. Members can add the following userboxes to identify themselves as members of the project. A list of members with these userboxes is available at Category:WikiProject Paranormal participants.

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Paranormal Unassessed

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